Abstract:
CLE had developed a valid and reliable placement test, Tertiary English Language Test (TELT), that sorts students into the right proficiency pathways for English language enhancement purposes in the past years. This test had also been used to ascertain the level of English language competency of our postgraduate cohorts of students on entry into HKIEd. Currently, there were 160 validated items in the TELT placement test which was funded through previous TDG bids. At a strategic level, HKIEd was currently working on a number of major directions, two of which are highly relevant to this new TDG bid. One was the Outcomes Based Learning initiative that made transparent the expected outcomes of our services and facilities. The other was the new language policy which would ‘transform’ Centre for Language in Education (CLE) from being just a provider of English enhancement courses to being a ‘hub’ of language facilities and support services where students, with the guidance of a language advisor, would take responsibility for reaching the mandated exit language benchmark levels on graduation. This implied that CLE must have a valid and reliable assessment framework that diagnosed and tracked students English language proficiency on an annual basis. If students were to complete an annual online proficiency assessment, the placement test needed to be further developed to meet further purposes of diagnoses and tracking.
Code:
T0073
Principal Project Supervisors:
Subjects:
Start Date:
08 Feb 2010
End Date:
31 Dec 2010
Status:
Completed
Result:
Due to the collaboration with other institutions where resources and expertise were shared, the following are the deliverables of the project:
Revised the test specifications for item writing and test development
Designed and revised the 36 listening items, 150 vocabulary items, 50 reading items, and 61 grammar items for test
Carried out 6 versions of multiple-choice tests to assess Year one students English language proficiency
Determined the cut-off points to stream Year one students into three CLE modules ‧ Conducted reliability and validity analysis on the multiple tests
Increased the number of reliable items available for HKIEd’s use from 150 to 230 items
Disseminated pilot diagnostic reports to all year 1 English major students
Developed specifications for an online diagnostic and tracking system
Impact:
The project was successful in that all the objectives it set out to achieve were accomplished within the time frame and budget given. It was also successful in that it was able to establish a collaborative partnership with other institutions which permitted the sharing of resources.
Financial Year:
2009-10
Type:
TDG